Lost In Time
by AvatarMayer
Summary: Lost to the unknown, ripped from time. Will Marco be able to face the demons that await him? Will he find the strength to push past things he believes he can't? Will he find the time to save her?
1. Prologue

The events of "Starcrushed" are altered for this story. Star didn't confess her feelings to Marco in front of everyone at the party and she didn't have to leave earth. The whole thing with Toffee pretty much never happened but everything else should be the same. Song day still happened, everyone knows about Ludo and Glossaryck and so on. Star just didn't have to leave earth to hide, something else happened.

This will be in Marco's POV for however long this goes. I wan't him to be the one telling the story. Normal text is present time, _italic text is a flashback or something to do with_ the _past._

Let me know if it's terrible or if I should keep going.

* * *

I still remember the look in her eyes, so helpless and so defeated. This was something her magic couldn't fix; she had known that for a while but I don't think she expected the events that unfolded. It has all become a blur at this point; I'm not sure when or where I am or where or where home is. I can't even remember the day it all happened perfectly anymore, but I do remember the important parts. When I was finally able to talk to Star after song day, she confessed to having feelings for me and I didn't even know how to react. She avoided me the entire party and waited until everyone had gone before she said a word to me.

" _So... yea... I just couldn't not tell you Marco, it just didn't feel right with you not knowing..."_

" _Star..." Before I could get a word in she interrupted me._

" _I won't let this ruin our friendship Marco, I know that you don't feel the same, and I know you're with Jackie, and you deserve her, and I would never let me be the reason..._

 _I could tell that Star wasn't going to stop anytime soon._

" _STAR!' I yelled. "I care about you so much, you are the best friend I have ever had and nothing will change that. I just want you to know that... as far as feelings go I'm just confused, I need some time to think."_

" _Alright Marco, I'll be here when you're ready." I could tell that she was relieved that the conversation was over but was still upset over the situation._

" _Well,_ _tomorrow_ _is friendship_ _Thursday_ _, how about we start there." She smiled back at me._

" _I would love that Marco."_

" _Alright, Goodnight Star." I watched her make her way to her room lost in everything that had happened. After a few moments of blissful nothing I made my way to my room; I needed to think everything over. I threw myself on the bed face first, colliding with the sweet softness of my pillow. Eyes closed and my face hidden from the world, my thoughts stirred around my head, each one screaming out at me to answer. Where do I even start? How could Star have feelings for someone like me? She's the princess of another dimension! Why would someone as awesome as her want boring old Marco from earth? I guess I never even thought about Star like that because I thought I would never stand a chance with her. I just don't know what to feel... I care about Jackie, but Star and I have shared so much... I need to talk with Jackie about this...wonder what time it is. I flipped myself to the side of my bed and called Jackie. Three rings later I hear her voice on the other end._

" _Hey Marco, What's up." Jackie's voice was so... normal to me. When Star was telling me everything just a few moments ago she didn't sound like Star... I could hear emotions she hadn't shared before in her words, it was a side I had never experienced before._

" _Yo Marco! You called me, what's up dude."_

" _Oh, sorry Jackie. Lost in thought, I've got a lot on my mind_ _tonight_ _."_

" _Ah I see, everything ok?" I could tell she wasn't ready for the bombshell I was about to drop._

" _That's actually why I called... Something just came up I need to talk to you about."_

" _What's going on Marco...?"_

" _Well, Star just told me she has feelings for me."_

" _Oh..." Concern now filled Jackie's voice._

" _Yea, I just don't know what to even think about all this... like why would Star have a crush on me? I knew we were friends but I never thought she would think of me like that. I'm just Marco and she is, well... Star. Like I would never be good enough for her.." Jackie cut me off before I was able to continue._

" _Marco it sounds like you need to really think things over..."_

" _Yea, I guess I do. This is all just so crazy you know."_

" _Yea, Love triangles tend to be a bit crazy... look, Marco, I like you and I like how close we have been getting, but it seems to me that your feelings are making it confusing to date someone right now..."_

" _Wait, Jackie, what are you saying? I'm glad that I'm with you.."_

" _I know Marco, It's just... I have seen how Star looks at you when you're not looking, and I've seen the way you look at her..._

" _Jackie that's ridiculous!" I couldn't tell what she was trying to get at._

" _Marco I'm not mad at you, I just... I don't want to be stuck in the middle of all this. I think it's best if we break up until you have had enough time to figure everything out."_

" _But Jackie..."_

" _Marco it's cool dude! Don't worry, we are still friends and maybe one day more but for now you need time to sort things out. Look I'll talk to you later alright Marco."_

 _That was the last time I ever spoke to Jackie. A week after we broke up, it happened. I guess it was best I called her that night and things happened the way they did. Star was convinced that Jackie breaking up with me was her fault and it took me five days to get Star to do anything but sit at home and blame herself for something that she didn't even cause. She finally agreed to go to Quest Buy with me so she could pick up something she had wanted for a while. We got there and everything was going great, Star was acting like Star and I was having fun until I had to go and fuck it up once again. We found ourselves in the very back of the store, a place we had not ventured yet, the place where it all happened... While looking at some of the half-empty shelves, that looked like they hadn't been stocked in years, I saw him, someone, who I can't explain, someone who's face I can't remember, someone that doesn't belong. I felt so drawn to him like he was calling me to him in silence. I approached him about to speak but before I could get a word out the man held out his hand and offered me what looked like a watch of some kind. My eyes were fixated on that watch; it felt as if it was a part of me I had lost. It was something I needed to have or I would never have the option to have it again. I can't explain these feelings or what came over me but I took it, and to this day it was the worst thing I could have ever_ _done. I reached out and took the watch, the second the watch was in my hands the man was gone like he had never been there. Star had come over to me and was asking what I had found..._

" _What ya got there Marco?"_

" _I.. I don't know. Did you see that dude."_

" _What dude. It's only us here Marco, I don't think anyone has come this far in a while. What did you find, gimme that!" Star grabbed the watch out of my hands._

" _Star what are you doing?" I moved in close to her to get a better look at the watch. It didn't look like a normal watch would, it had what looked like a leather band but the face of the watch was just darkness. It wasn't just a black watch with no parts; it almost looked like a black hole ready to suck you in. It just didn't look right to me. Star flipped the watch over to reveal a back plate of pure silver with words engraved into it. Star read to words without haste._

" _For those who seek adventure. WE SEEK ADVENTURE MARCO." Star had a smile on her face, I hadn't seen her smile in over a week and I wanted to do everything I could to make her smile more._

" _I guess we have to put it on then!" I boldly proclaimed as I stretched out my arm toward Star._

" _I'm the one who the dude gave it to so I get to wear it!" Star gave me a funny look as she handed the watch over._

" _There was no dude here Marco, are you going crazy?" My eyes were on the watch, the band had no holes in it and looked like it wouldn't stay on my arm but I put it on anyway. Once the back plate touched the top of my left wrist the watch bound to me, it clamped down, the straps wrapping around my wrist and forming a tight snug fit. It made me jump with how sudden it was. Star looked at me with an interested look._

" _You ok Marco? What happened?"_

" _STAR COME HERE, SOMETHING HAPPENING." The blackness in the face of the watch had started to glow a soft white light, it was as if a sea of light covered the face of the watch and washed away the darkness that was there. Star had come in close with her arm around my shoulders as she was looking at the watch._

" _Star I can feel something happening to me... I don't know what but something is happening..._

" _Does it hurt? What does it feel like?" Star's eyes were on the watch, she was staring into the light almost as if she was hypnotized._

" _It doesn't hurt, I don't know what this is. I've felt magic before and this isn't that Star." In the light of the watch, the darkness returned in the shape of what looked like a countdown timer which was set at 10 seconds. Once the numbers had faded in clearly they started to count down._

 _9..."Star what's happening?"_

 _8... "I don't know Marco how should I know what that thing is!"_

 _5... "STAR SOMETHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN I CAN FEEL IT._

 _3..._

 _2..._

 _1..._

 _One second we were in quest buy and now we were standing in a field covered in what looked like some kind of flowers but it was nothing I had seen before, on earth or anywhere Star had taken me. The flowers were taller than my dad and there was knee high grass with open planes for as far as the eye could see. We were in a field of flowers just slightly taller than us; It was beautiful I had never seen anything like this and Star looked like she shared in my wonder._

" _Star what is this place..." She looked at me confused at what had just happened._

" _I'm not sure but let's get out of here." She raised her dimensional scissors to open a portal but nothing happened. After many frustrated attempts to muster up a narwhal blast, or any form of magic we came to the conclusion that her magic doesn't work here._

" _How are we going to get home if I can't teleport us, Marco? How do we even know we are still on earth?" She was right, we were in the middle of nowhere with no way out at the moment and no idea where to go._

" _Well, I guess we have to walk from here Star."_

" _Walk where Marco?"_

" _Guess we will have to figure that out..." I took her by the hand and started off in hope of finding something._

 _That was three years ago... We found nothing in that place, or the next three places after that. The watch that I had put on my wrist was doing something that was not explainable to us. The watch has a 24-hour countdown timer and when it reaches 0 it will teleport the wearer and anyone who is touching them to a different world. Star and I thought each time we jumped it was just taking us to a different dimension within our universe but we were never so wrong. The watch does so much more than that, every time we jumped we were being sent through space and time. We would end up places in time where earth didn't exist, places where everyone we knew and loved were gone. Every 24 hours we would find ourselves in a new moment in time as well as a new moment in space. We had met people like us, we had met many monsters that were nothing like what we had ever seen. Some worlds had nothing, others were beaming with life, Some were hostile while others were welcoming. We had spent many days in the great company of people and creatures we will probably never see again. Those were the times we got lucky with a jump. There were too many times when we found ourselves close to death by the claws of some beast or the hands of sick and twisted people. No matter how many times we jumped Star's magic never came back and we had no idea of how to stop this watch from ripping us from time. Our plan was simple, if we jumped into a world with intelligence we would spend as much time as we could trying to find something about the watch, anything that could help us figure out what to do. I was never going to get that watch off by conventional means and deep down I already knew that there was something I had to do if I wanted this all to end, but I didn't have the slightest clue to what that was. All of our efforts were in vain, we never found anything, even in the biggest of libraries we had found, there was nothing about this watch or the man who gave it to me. If we jumped into a world that turned out to be hostile our plan was to find a place to lay low and rest. We only needed to wait out the 24 hours and we would be out of that place for good. We spent the last three years fighting and surviving trying to find a way home and an answer to the watch, but home and the watch will have to wait. One hundred jumps ago I lost her, we had jumped into what looked like a welcoming and peaceful place. After a few hours of hiking down what looked like a road for vehicles, we ran into a small town. There were children running around playing with one another, the ones that looked like adults had taken notice of us. We looked a lot like these people, they had on wears that looked like peasant clothing but each of them had some kind of stick in their hands. It didn't look like a weapon just a straight and very smooth stick. We didn't want to approach them right away but when they noticed us they yelled to us English._

" _Hey, there friends! Are you two alright?" The man who had spoken had a caring and welcoming tone to him; it made me feel like he was a good man right away, made me trust him._

" _We're actually a little lost and could use some help if you don't mind." The man waved us over with his hands yelling_

" _Come come! We will help you. Destro go and fetch some food and water right away!" the man was yelling more commands as we walked closer and closer to the village. He was making his way to us with a smile on his face when he reached out with his left hand to shake mine so I extended mine to be met with the face of horror. He was looking right at the watch, the man pulled away from me and pointed at the watch while screaming at the top of his lungs._

" _IT'S BACK. IT'S BACK. GET THEM RIGHT THIS SECOND." The man and the others had raised their sticks to us as if they were rifles and before I knew it I felt a sharp sting in my neck. My vision went blurry and I faded to black. When I woke I was in a cell with cast iron bars and a cold air that felt stale._

" _Ohhh my head..." I moaned as I sat myself up. I looked to my right and saw Star the cell next to mine still out cold on the floor. Her clothes were faded and torn, there was nothing in the cell, no bed, bathroom, just a small stone floor._

" _STAR! STAR WAKE UP" I yelled at her for what felt like forever until she finally awoke._

" _Ughh.. what... Marco?"_

" _STAR! It's me I'm over here." She rolled over to look at me, eyes still glazed a bit from whatever they hit us with._

" _How long were we out?" She mumbled. I hadn't checked that yet so I looked at the watch and my heart sank. I had never felt anything like that feeling before and it shattered me._

" _STAR YOU HAVE TO TAKE ME HAND." There were 30 seconds left until I jumped again, I had to get in contact with her or it would jump without her. I pushed my arm through the small gap between the bars and reached for her._

" _STAR HURRY THERE'S ONLY 25 SECONDS." The look of fear she had in her eyes will haunt me forever. She jumped up off the floor and ran to the bars of her cell. She stuck her arm out but my hand was just a little too far to reach my hand. I pushed myself up against those bars as hard as I could and she was so close. I was so close. I was looking into her eyes, helpless and so defeated and then they were gone._

I lost her one hundred jumps ago and not once in the three years of our travels did we go to a place we had already been. I won't lose hope, the man who put us in those cell's knew what this watch was when he saw it, the answers are out there and I won't rest until I have them. Until I have Star.


	2. Hub One

**Bold is Marcos thoughts to himself.** Everything else is present time. Hope you enjoy it.

* * *

In the three years that we were traveling together across time and space, not once can I recall the watch doing anything other than count down from twenty four hours to zero, jump, repeat. The face of the watch still glows a soft white light just bright enough to illuminate the deepest darkest places I find myself in. My jacket, even though it's faded and torn, still does a well enough job at covering up the light form whatever prying eyes might be watching. I've found plenty of people who wanted the watch just because they thought it would be of value; none of them knew what this thing could do, or what it really was. The people I found who were friendly toward me offered what help they could, if they believe my story that is, but in the end, I always jumped. I remember that a few people became very interested in our story before I lost Star, some would believe us. Sometimes they would be looking right at us when we would jump; I wonder what they are up to right now. Are they still trying to find an answer? Did they give up? None of it matters I guess as I highly doubt I will ever see any of those people ever again. I can only hope that I do jump to one of their worlds again and hope they have spent some time looking into answers. Sadly I have never been to the same play twice, or at least I have never seen the same city, town, or people twice. I don't have the slightest clue where to start looking for answers.

Star and I never found anything of importance about the watch, nothing that would tie Father Time or Omnitraxus to the watch. Even If we had found something that linked the watch to either of them we had no way of contacting them. I gave up hope that anyone from home knew where we were a long time ago, wherever they might be looking it wasn't the right place. The only goal I have right now is to find a way back to Star, nothing else matters. Even if I did find a way back home I couldn't face them knowing I left her behind. I often wonder if they even know we are gone, or when home even is anymore.

I only have two hours left in the world I'm stuck in at the moment and thank god for that. This place was not the friendliest of places, nothing but mindless monsters hunting whatever they could sink their teeth into as prey, me included. All of the monsters I have fought in these different worlds have been nothing like what I had fought on earth. These were just beasts; claws, teeth, hunger. There was no magic to be found in any of the worlds I had been to which is good for me since I don't know any, at least now it can't be used against me. I had a hand-weapon of some sort, worked like a pistol would on earth but I'm not sure what it shot out as it didn't kill whoever it hit. I'm not sure what it did to them, never stayed around long enough to find out. That and all my other supplies were in my backpack back with Star. I haven't been able to find a a suitable weapon yet but I did manage to get another backpack with some food of some kind thanks to some kind farmers twenty or so jumps ago. At the moment I am hiding in a damp and dark cave waiting out the count down to get me out of this monster-infested place and hopefully to somewhere that will give me some use.

Only an hour and a half left, and I have been safe in this cave for four hours now. I could shut my eyes and rest a bit. For some reason the watch always wakes me when there is one minute left on the countdown; it feels like a jolt of electricity though my entire body that doesn't hurt but it sure as hell doesn't feel good. It does its job at waking me up and giving me time to prepare enough for the jump if I happen to be sleeping, like right now. I sat down in the cave with my back toward a wall and covered up the watch so I could close my eyes to rest for the few moments I could...

I jolted awake, the sensation the watch gives me always scares me just a bit, I never fully got used to it I guess. I stood up pulling back my sleeve revealing the familiar glow that I have come to know, only thirty seconds left now. I prepared myself for whatever might be awaiting me in the world ahead of me. I have no way of knowing what I might jump into, usually I don't find myself in crowds of people or enemies. Most of the time I end up in a field, or an alley somewhere out of sight. Makes me think the watch is programmed to do that. Ten seconds now... I could feel it starting, every 10 seconds before a jump there is a buildup of, something. I don't know how to explain it but I can feel it ripping me to the next world. It just kept building until I was just, there.

Five...

Four...

Three...

Two...

One...

There are thousands of them, marching directly toward me; they are in an open field with short grass that goes on for miles. I had ended up at the base of a small hill with large trees which are hiding me from their sight well enough; it was dawn and the sun was rising behind me. There are men and women dressed in what looks like medieval armor, all of them have weapons of some sort. Swords, axes, bows, there are people riding horses, operating ancient weapons of war I had only seen in history books being used before my eyes.

" **Focus Marco, you need to get out of here now."** I had to force myself to not be in awe of what I was looking at.

I don't want to be here when those troops get to where I was and the only way I was getting away undetected is if I started going the way they are headed. There are too many of them for me to try and sneak past them. I turned my back to them and started to climb the hill; it only took me a few moments to get to the top, it was a lot smaller than it looked. As I pulled myself over the hill my eyes were met with the sight of thousands more men and women in different looking armor marching toward me. It was clear that this is what the other army was coming for. They were so close I could feel the ground shaking under their boots. I looked back down the hill to see the other army had almost made their way to the base of the hill. There was no getting out of this, I had to hide or fight. I looked around frantically in hopes of finding a weapon of any kind but my efforts were in vain. I noticed a tree with some low hanging branches and bolted toward it. I leaped toward the tree and grabbed the most sturdy looking branch with both arms and lifted myself up and began to climb as high as I could as fast as I could.

"OVER HERE! OVER HERE! I SAW SOMEONE GO UP THIS TREE."

" **Not good. Just keep climbing, maybe the leaves will mask you enough. Move, move, move."** I keep climbing while looking down every chance I got to see if anyone was tailing me up the tree. I saw a man in armor looking up the tree, pointing and yelling at me.

"HE'S IN THE TREE. OVER HERE! OVER HE. UGH." I saw a huge spear pierce the man's chest armor and send him flying what looked like ten feet. The other soldiers have made their way up the hill and are now pushing toward their enemy; the troops of the man who was hit are charging into battle screaming at the top of their lungs. I had made it as high up the tree as could unless I wanted to risk falling. I have a good grip on the tree with a firm branch under me I can sit on. I'm going to have to wait this out until it's over. I put my hands over my ears pressing down as hard as I could in hopes of blocking out the haunting screams and deafening war cries.

I don't know how many hours passed but I have been in this tree for so long I don't know how someone hasn't seen me yet. The noise of war has finally calmed down and I haven't heard anything going on under me for a while now. I started making my way slowly down the tree keeping my eyes and ears open for the slightest sound or movement. Even with my backpack, the descent took me under a minute before I was on the ground. I keep myself low to the ground as to not attract any attention if someone were to still be alive. All around me lay the fallen of battle, their weapons at my feet with no one in site to use them. It looks as though I am in a patch of trees within in a huge open field, each way is just open grass plains once you got past the tree line. I don't see any movement around me, I should be clear too...

"GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE BITCH!" I see a soldier who was a tank of a man chasing after a young girl who couldn't be much older than me, she dressed in peasant cloths. The man looked to be injured to the chest and it was visibly slowing him down but the man was still gaining on the girl. She was coming toward me and showed no sign of seeing me, I lay on the ground and looked to my right and saw a large mace stained in blood. I looked back to the girl who was only a few feet from me now, her pursuer not far behind. I grabbed the mace with my right hand and pulled it close, I looked up and the man was almost on me, I stood up and swung with all my might and hit him right in the chest. The man fell to the ground with a grunt as I drooped the mace. The girl stopped running and looked in my direction yelling back to me.

"If you want to live you better follow me!" The girl had taken off running again toward the open field. This is the only option I have at the moment so the hell with it. I took off running after the girl, I was able to keep up well enough but she was moving pretty quickly. We ran for what felt like miles until she finally stopped at a beaten old road that looked like it hadn't been traveled in years. The girl looked up and down the path each way then looked at me.

"Come, this way. We're almost there." She took off running again down the road, again at almost full speed like it was nothing. I was out of breath but picked myself up and kept running after her. After almost a mile more we came upon a small cabin at the end of the road with a large rock wall covered in moss, with trees guarding the back of the home, and the only way to get here was the road.

"Thanks by the way, for taking care of the guy who was chasing me. He would have killed me." I was panting for air and could hardly speak back to her.

"No... sweat..." She was looking at me with the expression one give a child who can't master the simplest of tasks.

"How are you that tired after only running seven miles? I ran 340 miles yesterday to the main city and back without breaking a sweat." With my hands on my knees I looked up at her.

"Let's just say I'm not from here. What is this place?" She started walked toward the cabin.

"This is my home, I grew up in this house as did my parents. Come let me show you inside and get some food in you. When was the last time you ate?" I couldn't even answer that question. I just followed her inside still a bit out of breath. It's a small place with only two rooms. One large living room and a small bed room. The girl made her way to the fire place and started putting logs into it. I took a seat in a chair in the living room.

"My name's Marco by the way, thanks for bringing me with you." She looked back at me from the work she was doing.

"Don't worry about it, you saved my ass too remember? Oh, and the name's Cassy." She turned her attention back to the fire. I looked around the house to find the place fully decorated with hunting trophies, the living room has a few chairs around the fire place with nothing much else in it. The bed room has a small bed in it with a few sheets and nothing more. I can hear her starting to tinder the fire a few feet in front of me.

"What were you doing at the war field? I know you're not a soldier so who are you?" Cassy hadn't stopped making the fire or looked at me. I thought how I would explain who I was to her for a moment.

"I'm from far away, I'm looking for someone I lost." This was the best way to put it without spending the rest of the time I had here explaining it to her.

"Do you know where this someone is?"

"Not yet, but I feel like I'm getting close." Cassy got up from the fire which had now started to freely burn. She grabbed a skillet and what I'm assuming to be meat and put it on the fire, the meat started to sizzle as she sat down in the chair next to me.

"How close, do you think they are in Cardatha?" I'm guessing she meant a distant city of some kind.

"Maybe, I'm not sure yet but she might be." I don't want to have to explain anything so I decided to just play along.

"If you think she is there I can take you tomorrow." I looked down at my wrist and slowly pulled back my sleeve to look at the watch. I had 13 hours left and the sun had just set; I wasn't going to leave this house until I jumped.

"That would be great if you don't mind. So what were you doing on that battle field, and what was that all about?" I wanted to get her off the subject of who I was looking for.

"Wait, you don't know who was fighting each other out there? Just how far away is your home? Those were the royal guard of Lord Albis fighting the Legion of Kanthorne, only you know, the two biggest nations in the world but I guess you don't come from that world do you?" This girl just had so many questions and probably expected answers. I just needed to play along for the next 13 hours until I got out of here. This girl seamed nice but you never know what people are truly up to.

"I live in the wild, off the land. I kept to myself and everything was fine until soldiers came and took her from me. I followed them here and that's how I met you." Cassy looked away from my eyes and toward the ground.

"I'm sorry Marco but if the soldiers got her then she is already dead; they took my parents just six months ago. I don't want to give you false hope." I could tell she was truly sorry to be the one to tell me this and it makes me glad Star is nowhere near this place, even if that means she is in that cell still.

"Well I won't give up hope, I know she is out there. I can feel it." The meat had started to smell like it might be close to done by now. I was just beginning to wonder when we would eat, and then Cassy got up to grab the skillet. She reached into the fire and picked it up with her bare hands without the slightest flinch. It made me remember all the amazing little differences I have seen in people through my travels in these worlds.

"I will still take you to the capital, but you won't find what you're looking for." She had cut the meat into equal parts in the skillet and sat it down on a small table in front of us. She immediately started grabbing chunks of meat with her hands and shoving it in her mouth. She looked at me confused.

"Well? Are you going to eat or not? We have a long trip ahead of us tomorrow, you will need food and rest." I was starving and exhausted so I reached out to grab a piece without much of a second thought to what I was eating. I was about to put the meat into my mouth when a loud sharp female voice that sounded almost like a computer came ringing from the watch.

"Destination lock enabled, coordinates received. Activating recall to hub one."

"Ten"

"Nine" The watch had somehow reset from the countdown. This had never happened before. Cassy was looking at me while reaching for a weapon by the door.

"Four"

"Three"

"Two" Cassy grabbed her sword and lunged at me.

"One"

"MARCO! IT WORKED!" Before I knew what was happening I was wrapped in a tight embrace.

"What.. Star?"


	3. Beach Day

All normal text is present time.

 _Italic is the past._

Pretty much this entire chapter is a flashback.

Hope you like it. :)

* * *

All my plans, everything I had set out to do to try and save her were gone. Here she was, holding me. The embrace lasted for what felt like an eternity until she finally pulled back.

"Come on Marco we gotta move! They were right behind me; we don't have much time before they're here." Star reached down and took me by the hand pulling me toward a set of double doors and down a twisting hallway of computers and machines. Star is stammering on about something but I can't hear a word. My eyes are locked on her hand in mine, pulling me to whatever destination she had set. I felt at peace, all the nights spent thinking the worst, everything that was looming over my head, the shame and filth of the things I had done has washed away. I'm lost in blissful nothingness, even if only for a moment it makes me remember back a year ago to a rare opportunity we were given...

 _Star's hand in mine we both closed our eyes and prepared for the jump._

 _Three..._

 _Two..._

 _One..._

 _I opened my eyes, always prepared for the worst only to be met with the sight of waves crashing on a beach, a beautiful sunset glows on the horizon with a soft breeze carrying the smell the ocean everywhere. I turned around to find star looking at an almost identical image of what I was just looking at. I had to look back to make sure what I was seeing was real and indeed my eyes weren't playing tricks on me. There were two suns in the sky, one was setting while the other was rising. We were on a small island that couldn't have been much larger than the school, with no visible way to get off it. There were a few palm trees around the island that had coconuts in them; grass filled the center of the island until the sand from the beach overwhelmed everything till the water line. Everything looked and felt like earth; the way the ocean smelled, the sounds of the seagulls, the color of the sky. The only thing was the two suns, if they were not in the sky I would be sure this was home._

" _Well, I don't see a way off this thing so I guess we just have to wait it out." I could tell star was still upset about the events of the last world we just came from. She had walked a little ways away from me and sat down in the sand watching one of the suns set. This was a talk I was hoping to avoid but she had every right to be upset. I made my way over to her and took a seat on her left in the sand._

" _Star look... I know it's hard to..." Her voice overtook mine just enough to stop my talking._

" _I understand Marco, I know that it_ _was him or us_ _... I just... You're sixteen Marco, you were fourteen when this all started. I've watched you do things for us that no sixteen year old should be doing but you've had to and that's what kills me the most. You didn't choose to do any of these things, you HAD to. You were forced to do all these awful things all because of me..." Star hadn't looked at me yet, she was still staring into the almost set sun. I could see tears starting to fall down her cheeks as her words were cut off due to a choke of emotion. I scooted in closer to her and put my arm around her pulling her toward me, she fell into my chest as the tears started to fall. In a shaken and tearful voice she still spoke before I was able to say anything._

" _If I hadn't forced you to put on that watch none of this would have ever happened."_

" _Star I would have put that watch on even if you told me not to. You are not the reason for any of this, the only one to blame is the person who gave this to me." She pulled away from my chest and looked me in the eyes._

" _Marco none of this would have happened if you hadn't met me! You would have never known about magic, never found that watch, and would have never had to kill that man! This is my fault Marco and..."_

" _STOP IT STAR!" She stopped in the middle of her words and just stared at me._

" _I don't care who's fault it is! What's done is done. My life was nothing before I met you Star; I wasn't even able to talk to people without becoming a nervous wreck before you came into my life. And yeah I have done some things I'm not proud of, but I did them to keep us safe! It doesn't matter if I'm sixteen or fifty there are still going to be bad people out there and those bad people are still going to try and hurt others. I didn't want to do what I did but he gave me no choice; I wasn't going to let him hurt you. Yes things could be different, I could be still in school learning about god knows what, but I'm not, I'm here with you and I wouldn't have it any other way Star." Just please don't blame yourself, you saved me a long time ago from something much worse than the things I've had to do." Star was looking at me with red puffy eyes from crying._

" _I'm sorry Marco, I guess I'm just tired of being stuck in this mess. I know that we have only done what we needed to do and that's ok. If I have to be stuck in all this at least I'm stuck in it with you. Hugs?" She was looking at me with that goofy fake smile of her. I laughed a bit and leaned into her embrace._

" _I'm sorry as well star. Well, It doesn't look like we are getting off this island anytime soon so we might as well enjoy ourselves! How much food do we have left?" Star rummaged through her pack counting this and that._

" _We have enough to last us more than the time we will spend here. Should be fine on water too." I had an idea to get our minds off the events of the past._

" _Perfect, let's have a picnic! We have this beautiful beach with an endless sun for the next twenty-four hours, let's put it to use. We could use a day off." Star's eyes brightened at the idea of some fun for once._

" _I like the way you think Marco." That smile I had grown to love had made its way back to her face once again._

" _Alright, I'll get some wood from one of those trees to make a small fire so we can cook something, can you get everything else ready.?"_

" _Sure thing Marco! Here we go." Star jumped to her feet and was already at work getting the food ready to cook. I got up and took out the knife I had in my pack and made my way to the closest tree to try and get something I could burn. I hacked and sliced away until I had a good enough amount of twigs and small sticks to make a fire good enough to cook with. As I made my way back to where Star was on the beach, I stopped for a moment to take in what I was looking at. For so long we had been running, hiding, fighting, just surviving when we found ourselves in a new world. There were some that gave us no danger, but this was the first time I was going to be alone with her for twenty-four hours. Presuming that nothing happens, we have an entire day to just relax here and do whatever we want. It was a good feeling knowing that there wasn't much to worry about right now._

" _You ok there Marco?" I snapped out of my thoughts and found Star's eyes._

" _Yea sorry, just lost in thought. You know this is the first time we have been alone since this all started." I sat down near Star in the sand and started building something that could resemble a small fire pit. Star had a small pot and a few cans of whatever that was, soup maybe? We have grown custom to the unusual tastes we found in the worlds we have been to._

" _You know, you're right Marco. When was the last time we just had fun?" I honestly couldn't think of a time we just had some time to just do whatever we wanted. Each day was either survival or spending all the time we could trying to find an answer._

" _I don't even know Star... Let's make the best out of the time we have then!" I looked at the watch and thought up a quick plan._

" _We have twenty-three hours so let's make the most of it, first we can eat this, ummm, soup? And then after that we can swim in the ocean until we never want to be in the water again. We can figure out the rest later." Star was visibly excited at the idea of some free time._

" _You're a smart man Marco, that fire looks ready so I'll get the food cooked." Star grabbed her supplies and plopped down in front of the fire preparing our meals for us. I leaned back in the sand taking in everything that was around me. Had anyone or anything else ever set foot on this island? Are we the first and maybe the only people who will see the beauty of this place? I guess it doesn't matter, we are here now and planned to enjoy this for everything it is._ _I turned my eyes to Star as she was stirring our meals waiting for them to be ready. She had a smile on her face and looked giddy and happy; even after everything that has happened to us she always finds a way to see things in a better light. This can get rough sometimes but in the end she always finds the light. She was so carefree and full of love, every chance she got in any world we were in she would help those in need if she was able. She would put aside her own feelings and emotions to aid those who were lost. It felt as if I was watching the Queen in Star come to life over the past few years. This journey has changed her, but she was still Star. She could still be goofy and crazy, spoke her mind and made her opinion know. She just saw things in a new light now. I don't know how I know, but I can see it in the way she carries herself, she walks like someone with wisdom, and even if she doesn't know it, she has so much wisdom to give. I could tell she was going to make a great queen if we were to ever get home._

" _Food should be ready now Marco! You know it's kinda creepy to stare like that." I had been lost in thought and was staring right at Star, daydreaming._

" _Oh, sorry. I was just lost in thought, you know, watching you grow up these past few years has just... You're turning into a great person Star. I can see it in how you treat people and I'm glad this shitty situation hasn't stopped you from becoming the person I hoped you would." Star was blushing while she tried to hide the huge smile that was forming._

" _You really think that Marco?"_

" _I'm not the only one who thinks that Star. If you're mom and dad could see you now, all of our friends, they would all see it as well. You shine Star, the good in you." Star was tearing up as she came up to me and pulled into a hug._

" _As long as you think I'm a good person then I know I'm doing something right. Ever since I met you I've found myself thinking twice about the things I do, asking myself what would Marco think of me if I did this? I want you to know that I wouldn't be who I am right now if it wasn't for you. You're just as important in all this as me. Don't forget that ok?" She was still holding me tightly with her face buried in my chest._

" _I can never forget anything you tell me Star, there's always some reason behind the rambling."_

" _HEY!" Star pulled back and playfully hit me in the arm laughing._

" _I don't ramble!"_

" _OH don't EVEN get me started."_

" _You be quiet Marco, let's eat." Star skipped a few feet to the pot that was cooling next to the fire She pulled out two cups from her backpack and filled them with the soup. She walked over to me and handed mine over to me._

" _Here's to another mystery meal that will probably taste like crap!" I raised my cup with hers and took a swig on the soup prepared for the worst but greeted with a sweet tasting broth. I looked at Star and she had the same surprised look on her face that I probably had._

" _Well this day just keeps getting better and better, I can't remember the last time we have food that actually tasted good." Star laughed at my remarks._

" _Tell me about it, what about that one time on the planet with the bugs!? Remember eating that green goo that tasted like death?" I could physically feel the odor of the green stuff the second she brought it up._

" _Oh god Star, why did you have to bring that up." I had my hand on my stomach in a playful banter of sickness but in reality, that stuff was SO bad and I can't believe that we ate it. We both finished our soup exchanging the small talk one would expect when eating. After around twenty minutes or so of sitting around and talking to one another Star was finally prepared to swim. The last time I was at the beach was with Star when we had beach day, we always wanted to have another one and I guess that gets to happen now. Star still had her light blue dress that she wore but under she had on a pair of jeans and some shirt we had taken from somewhere that I can't remember. She removed the dress as well as her shirt, leaving just her sports bra and the jeans. She looked at me and giggled._

" _Staring is creepy Marco." She playfully teased. I could feel my face was red with embarrassment, I just didn't expect her to undress that quickly and boldly. I just laughed it off and took off my jacket, shirt, socks and shoes and ran for the water._

" _Last one there cleans the pot!" Star bolted after me almost right after I took off but I had the lead and there was no way she would pass me._

" _HEY, THAT'S NOT FAIR."She yelled after me as I made my way to the water's edge. I ran right into the ocean without a care and before I knew it I couldn't feel the bottom anymore and was fully immersed in ocean's warm bath. The water felt so warm it felt like I was in bath water, there was no ocean on earth that would be this warm. Star was right behind me, splashing and swimming her way to where I was floating not far from shore. I splashed her in the face playfully as she approached me._

" _HA! Now you have to clean the pot."_

" _Marco Diaz I will kill you." Star had splashed me back laughing as she kept going. She was going to win the splash off. We giggled and splashed each other and swam around for a while until we tired out and swam back to shallower water. We both sat in the water looking at the now setting sun while the second sun started to rise behind us on the other side of the island. Star leaned her head into my shoulder and sighed._

" _I wish we could stay here forever, just you and me, all the sweet soup we can eat and warm water to swim all day in. no worries, no responsibility, just you, me and fun to be had." I knew she was just daydreaming out loud but so much of me wished that we could just stay here and not worry about anything. I knew we were destined for greater things than a beach, but part of me wished we weren't._

" _Trust me, I wish we could too." I felt her relax into me even more and look up into my eyes._

" _I have known a lot of people in my life, being a princess you are forced to meet people whether you like it or not. They were all good people but everyone wanted me to change in some way, they wanted me to do this or be that. I NEEDED to have this or that to be a proper princess and it was all well and good, but no one cared what I wanted to be. They all just expected me to go down this path that was laid out for me and everyone was just pushing me along it until I met you. You are the first person who hasn't pushed me further. You took me in for everything that I am and never expected me to change myself, you only gave my guidance. You did the one thing no one did in the years of being trained to be the perfect princess, you let me decide what to do and let me learn from it while giving me advice on what to do. You never forced your hand. Look, Marco, I guess I'm just trying to tell you..."_

" _I love you Star." She was a little taken back at my forwardness but just smiled back at my looking right into my eyes._

" _I have been through so much with you Star and you always are there for me in the end. My life was..." I was cut off as Star pushed her lips on mine bringing me into her kiss. It lasted only a few seconds but they felt like hours. As she pulled away she just smiled at me looking truly happy once again._

" _I'm so tired from the last world, we didn't get much sleep dealing with you know who." Now that she mentioned it we hadn't slept for over twenty-four hours now, and I was feeling the weight of the journey pulling me down. I looked at the watch still glowing on my wrist, we had nineteen hours left still. I looked at her, still lost in the moment and nodded._

" _We should get some rest while we can, never know what we are going to end up in when we jump." Star sighed as she got up from next to me in the water._

" _UGH! Don't remind me, let's go." She gave me her hand and helped me up, we made our way back to our packs and pulled out the mats we had to sleep on. After we set everything up we both laid down under the shade of one of the trees. I looked over at Star who looked to be already drifting to sleep._

" _Sleep as long as you like, we have nothing to worry about here." She opened her eyes and smiled at me._

" _Get some sleep Cutie." She closed her eyes and was asleep before I knew it. It was amazing how she was able to fall asleep so fast. I rolled over and closed my eyes. I could feel the heavy weight of slumber overcoming me..._

 _I jolted awake, I was still under the palm tree. I looked at the watch and saw that there was only one minute left. I leaned over and saw that Star was still sleeping and I moved to her and shook her awake._

" _Mmphh what." She wasn't ready to wake up yet, even after sleeping eighteen hours._

" _Star we have one minute, let's go!" That's all It took to have her on her feet and running to get our gear. We grabbed everything with thirty seconds to spare and waited for the jump._

We never talked about the kiss after that and now here she is with her hand in mine.

"Star where are you taking me!" She smiled and looked back at me while she still traversed the computer covered halls with ease.

"I know what we have to do to get home."


	4. Broken Wings

Here is part 4, Hope you guys like it.

* * *

"Star where are we going!?" We have been running down these halls ducking in and out of doors here and there for ages now. I was beginning to wonder if Star knew where she was even going. She wasn't answering me, she just kept stopping now and again to think of where we were going until she set off once more. It had been at least five minutes of running up and down these halls and Star's mind was focused on getting us wherever she was leading. I trust her enough to know to shut up and let her work; she must have worked hard on getting me here and once we were safe I know she will explain everything.

"There it is! God, I thought I got lost again..." I'll just pretend that I didn't hear her say that last part.

"Where are we Star? What is this place?" Star lead me through a final set of doors into a room filled with computers beeping and processing all around me. In the center of the room there sits a small staircase that leads up to a platform which holds a clear cylindrical tube that appears to be able to hold at least five men. The tube hissed and began to lower down into the floor revealing a pad on the floor that has lit up with the same glow as my watch. I looked over at Star who was busy at work on one of the computers.

"What is this thing Star?" Star finished typing something into the computer and ran to me grabbing my hand, pulling me into the now open tube.

"I'll explain in ten seconds Marco." Right as we entered the platform the clear glass hissed and rose up trapping us inside. This was a good thing as the second the tube sealed in place men stormed the room we were in led by the same man who had locked us in the cell and divided me and Star in the first place. He pounded on the glass with all his might but his efforts were in vain, he was unable to leave a scratch. He was looking right at Star with an anger I hadn't seen in a man before.

"I'll get you, you hear me? I WILL FIND YOU AND FINISH OUR LITTLE GAME." Just like the effect of the watch, we have jumped into what I am assuming to be, a new world. We are in an alley of a city; I can hear the busy sounds of city life buzzing around us. Night must have just fallen, it was dark but light still loomed over everything still.

"What just happened Star? Where are we?" She looked at me and sighed.

"I'm not sure Marco, but I do have this." Star reached into her pack and pulled out a device that looked like an old handheld radio. It had buttons and knobs on it with a small screen that glowed green.

"With this, I can control where we jump to! Well, sort of..."

"Wait? You mean that thing can get us home? Let's use it then!" Star looked at me and sighed.

"I wish it was that easy, this thing... It's hard to use. I can only use it in the last ten seconds and I have to know what to tune it to. In other words, we're still lost but we have a way home now, just need to find where home is."

"Star this is great news! We have a way out of this thanks to you! Do you know where we are right now? What's the plan?" She looked a little overwhelmed with all the questions.

"I don't have a plan anymore Marco. My plan was to get you back and I haven't really thought about much after that." I can tell that something is upsetting her, but now's not the time to talk about it. I grabbed her by the hand and started walking. She looked confused.

"You have a plan now all of a sudden?" I just smiled back at her.

"Not really no, but we do need to find somewhere safe. We still have to wait until we jump before we can use that thing that you found right?" I sad referring to the device.

"Yep, in the last ten seconds I can sort of pick where we go... But, it's complicated." I could tell she had no idea how to use this thing.

"Then we do what we have always done, look for more answers to where home is, and hope. All that really matters is that we're back together." I tightened my grip on her hand slowly feeling hers respond back. We have made our way down the alleyway revealing an extremely busy street that had cars zooming up and down them at blurry speeds. These cars have no wheels, they only glow a bright blue underneath them while hovering above the ground. Beside the street looks to be a sidewalk with people dressed in clothing I have never seen before, some of the people's shirts and jackets would keep changing color somehow. Others seemed to change less often while some didn't change at all. It is very strange. There were storefronts all up and down the street with mile high buildings all around us that looked to go on forever. We started making our way down the street looking at the various stores trying to find something that could help us. We walked for maybe a mile until we saw a store with a sign that said Library. We quickly made our way to the front doors and walked inside. The front of the store looks fairly small but the inside was humongous. There had to be at least one hundred floors that were completely filled with bookshelves stocked full with books. The room opened up to a circle with bookshelves and cases filling the circle. At the center of the huge room is a spiral staircase that went up as far as the eye can see.

"Wow... this place is, something." Star is mesmerized by the library we're in and to be honest, I am as well. A sight like this is something you know you will only see once in your life.

"Tell me about it. Hey Star, I've got an idea. Every time we find a library we have always looked in nonfiction, what if the guy who gave me this watch is some sort of legend or something? Like a fairy tale for kids that's actually real." Star's eyes lit up at the idea.

"You're right! We have never tried that, let's go!" She pulled me toward the staircase through the few people looking at books here and there. The people here didn't seem to care about us at all; no one has questioned us about anything yet.

"Star, this place is huge. How are we even going to find the fiction section?" She is looking around trying to find something when she just bolted away from me toward a man behind a desk. I started to follow in tow but Star was already back to me before I could take three steps.

"Found it! It's on the top floor." Star said with a smile, proud of her fast detective work. That smile slowly turned into a frown when she realized we couldn't even see the top floor from here, and there are only the stairs. We both sighed and made our way to the stairs and started the climb. Right when we stepped on the first steps a transparent screen appeared in front of us with an image of a woman holding a large book.

"Please state the floor and section you are looking for." The women had a very pleasant voice, one that reminded you of a mom.

"Umm, top floor for fiction please?" I said hoping that would work.

"Of course sir! Please hold on to the railing." Star and I gripped the railings and were whisked up the stairs at great speed. In almost the blink of an eye, we are on are the top floor right in front of a sign that says 'fiction' with more books shelves than one can count behind it.

"Please exit and return anytime when you are ready to leave! Have a good day!" The image of the women faded away and Star and I got off the unexpected ride. We looked at the overwhelming number of bookshelves and cases in front of us. I'm wondering if this is even worth the time, but what else are we going to do? This is the best place to look for answers, now if we only have enough time to read all these books.

"Want to walk up and down the aisles and skim for anything that pops out?" Star nodded in agreement.

"Yea, we wouldn't get past the first four of these if we spend too much time on one. These are huuuuge." I chuckled at her.

"Well, let's get going." I glanced at my watch. "We have only been here an hour; we have plenty of time. Hopefully this place doesn't close." Star smirked at me.

"Marco this place is so big I don't think anyone could find us if they wanted to." She had a point.

"True, come on! Let's start here." I walked toward one of the rows of shelves and slowly skimmed up and down while making my way down the aisle. It was set up so there was a space between every bookshelf that would let you pass to the next row over, and there was no end to this in sight. Star is looking at one side while I was looking at the other, hoping we might find something useful this time. My mind was back to the moments we shared on that beach, I had been thinking about it a lot recently wondering why she never brought it up again. There really is no point in hiding from my feelings anymore, no point in being nervous talking about them with her. We have come so far and learned so much in this journey, with the things I've had to do you would think my nerves would be calm talking to Star but my heart is still pounding.

"Hey Star..."

"What's up Marco? She turned her attention from the books to me.

"Well... It's just, about that day we had on the beach world. I just.." I was cut off by her laughing lightly.

"Oh, Marco you're cute. Look, all you need to know about that day is it was real. I meant what I said but it's just... now isn't the time to get caught up in that. I was thinking about it a lot when we were apart and we just can't let it distract us from getting home. We need to stay sharp and all that... We can pick up where we left off when we get out of this mess." She walked up to me and gave me a peck on the cheek and went back to looking for answers. I can feel how red my face is, even after all this I still get nervous when she talks to me. Knowing how Star felt, put my mind to rest. She was also right about not letting feelings and emotions get in the way of our goal. There would be plenty of time for that when we finally get home. We continued up and down the aisles for hours looking at books and chatting about this and that, it was nice to be with her again.

"NO FUCKING WAY! This can't be real." I turned from the books to face Star. She was holding a book out to me with the title 'The Watch from Time Owners Manual' with a picture of the exact watch I had on plastered on the cover. I looked at Star in disbelief.

"There is no way that's real, give me that." I grabbed it from her hands and opened it o the first page. I read the first line out loud for Star.

"In order to use this handbook, you must possess the transceiver. I bet that's the thing you have! Grab it!" Star reached into her pack and pulled out the strange device. It matched the drawing of it in the book well enough to convince me that this book was the real deal. I kept reading from the book aloud.

"Once you have the device turn to page seventy-three, all other text in this book will show you how to retrieve the receiver." I flipped through the book as fast as I could finally ending on the page I desired. There was only a short paragraph for the entire page of seventy-three, all the rest were packed with other information on how to find the device, but this one was the only one with this little text. Star was looking on in anticipation as I read aloud again.

"Once you have the device you may travel freely between worlds given that you know where the hub of each world is located. To locate the hub for a world, place the device over the watch and press the third button on the right-hand side, the watch will now lead you toward the hub for that world. The hub can be anywhere so it might take much effort to find it. Once you have found the hub of a world, use the device with the control panel and it will open the pathway. Once you cross into the pathway you will be free to choose your wanted destination within the encyclopedia of time. Traveler be forwarded, there are only seconds once you cross into the pathway for you chose your destination" I stopped and look up at Star who was awaiting more.

"Is that it? There has to be more!" I looked over the page and the back of it once again but there was no other text to be found.

"That's it. At least we know what to do now. Here, use the device on the watch like it says. Let's see if it will lead us to the hub here." Star moved the device over my watch and pressed the button. The watch started to pulse in what looks like ripples on water. After a few seconds the countdown timer on the watch disappeared and a compass with an arrow that was pointing in the way we need to go appeared in its place. It also had small text that read 'four miles to destination.' I looked at star happily.

"The watch says the thing is only four miles away! And it seems like it points me where we need to go." Star grabbed my arm and inspected the watch for herself.

"Crazy, it could do this for all the years we were lost and all we needed was this device. Alright, let's follow it! This might be our way home." She pulled me by the hand back down the aisles we had come through, toward the stairs. We reached the stairs faster than I thought. We told the transparent lady of the stairs to take us to the ground floor. Before we knew it we are back on the street and running in the direction the watch tells us. We ran for four miles taking twists and turns until we finally ended up at a building with the same looking store front as all the others but this one read 'the gardens.' We made our way inside to be greeted with a huge open plain of grass and flowers that go on forever. The watch said there was only half a mile left so we trekked on. Shortly we reached where the watch told us to go but it was still just an open field; there was nothing here but grass and flowers for miles. The watch spoke in the same loud female voice I had heard when Star pulled out of that world of wars and back to her.

"Destination reached, activating accelerated jump." The compass dissolved away and the countdown timer was back with only thirty minutes left on it. I looked at my wrist in confusion tapping the watch, this couldn't be right?

"What's wrong Marco?" I looked up at her.

"The watch reset, we only have thirty minutes until we jump. You heard it say that stuff right?" She nodded at me.

"Yea but there isn't anything here? This book has to be wrong or that damn transceiver is broken!" Star wasn't happy about being led here for nothing, but I knew there had to be more to this.

"Don't worry about it Star, it will be ok. Maybe the place underground or something, who knows! When we jump again we can just look for another one. We pretty much have unlimited try's right?"

"I guess you're right, you always do have a plan don't you Marco." She was smiling at me and I could feel my face getting red. Star was giggling at me.

"You're cute when you blush." Hearing this only made me blush more and made her giggle more. I can tell she is enjoying this. She came toward me and pulled me into a hug.

"I'm just teasing silly." I could feel Star sigh into the hug as well as the weight of everything that was pulling her down. She pulled back from the hug and smiled at me.

"It's so good to have you back Marco." I wrapped my arm around her back pulling her close and messing with her hair playfully.

"I missed you too Star." She was laughing as she pushed me off and away from messing with her hair anymore. I laughed along with her for a few moments before I sat down in the grass. Star sat down next to me.

"So what's the plan, Marco?"

"We wait here until the jump, then we try and get home." Star leaned her head into my shoulder.

"I like that idea." We sat there in silence just listening to the wind blow the flower-filled fields around us for a while. We have just a few moments of peace. We know what we need to do and we have a plan so all that matters at this moment is nothing. As we were sitting there in blissful nothingness I remembered the man who was screaming at Star when we jumped from the world she was held captive in.

"Hey Star, what was up with that guy who was yelling at you when you got us out of that last world?" She raised her head from my shoulder and wouldn't look at me.

"I don't want to talk about him." I can tell something had happened between then and I needed to know what, if she wouldn't talk to me about it then it must serious.

"Star it's ok. You can talk to me...

"NO MARCO! I TOLD YOU I DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT." Star had walked away from me crossing her arms and not letting her eyes meet mine. I stood up but kept my distance from her.

"What did he do to you Star?" When I asked that her arms dropped and she turned around with tears in her eyes. She shook her head slowly.

"He hurt me Marco, and I couldn't stop him..." Star had begun to cry softly as I made my way to her pulling Star into an embrace. She hugged me back, after a few moments she pulled back and spoke.

"Might as well show you because I know you're just going to pester me until I do anyways." Star lifted her shirt and turned around revealing scars up and down her back, they looked like they would have come from a whip of some fashion. The small wings that were on her back are now shattered and torn. Star put her shirt back down and faced me. My head is spinning, I can't explain the emotions I am feeling right now.

"Why did he do this to you Star?" She looked down at the ground.

"They wanted you... I wouldn't let them have you..."

"Oh Star." I pulled her back into a hug and held her for so long. Time felt as if it had stopped fully. The watch finally pulled us from our moment when it reached one minute left and jolted me. I picked up my pack and handed Star's to her. I took her by the hand and waited for the jump to happen. I am lost in so much anger all I can do is stare straight ahead thinking of that man's face, memorizing everything I can remember about him. My heart is pounding harder and harder, how dare he do this to her. How dare her even think about laying a finger on her.

"How dare he..."


	5. Galactic Gowns

Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out but here's chapter 5

Thank you to all who have reviewed this far, it means a lot and keeps me going. :)

Hope you guys enjoy it.

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I have opened my eyes to a sight I have never seen before. We are standing in front of a huge glass window and beyond that window is a sea of Stars. I've walked up to the window and looked closely to everything that is in sight. As I look around I notice there are ships flying next to us, the faint blue glow of their gigantic engines lights up every detail of the ships all around us. It's clear that we are on some sort of space ship and it appears we have joined whatever fleet this is. Star had walked up, joining me next to the window.

"Wow... this is beautiful, I never knew things like this could be real." Her eyes were huge with wonder, like a child mesmerized by never before seen sights. I looked around where we are standing to figure out where we are exactly. We seemed to be in a large viewing room of some kind, maybe a common area? There are chairs everywhere and more windows all around us; at the ends of the room there are two large doors that look to go further into the ship. The room is empty except for us, this is odd considering the size of the room, but we have seen much stranger things in our days. I brushed it off and turned my attention back to Star.

"We should probably get going Star, we don't know if it's safe here or not." Star's eyes left the ships and joined mine.

"You're right, let's go." Just as we are about to make our way to one of the doors, they both burst open reveling two people at each door. They looked human but they are not standing, they are floating, sort of hovering just above the ground. Both of them looked at us and began to advance, I stood in front of Star ready to fight if needed when one of them spoke to us.

"Please do not be alarmed, we mean you no harm." Both of the people had stopped coming toward us and keep a respectful distance. The one who spoke had a soft and welcoming voice, but I have learned not to trust people based on good impressions alone. The other person now spoke to us, but strangely he spoke in the exact same voice that the other person had, it sounded like the same person.

"We apologize if we have frightened you, we are just curious to how you ended up here. We have an exact life form count on the ship and just five minutes ago we detected two unidentified life forms that seemed to appear out of thin air." Right after the man stopped speaking Star took the opportunity to say something.

"We apologize as well for the intrusion but we had no choice on coming here, we were forced into this place." The two people came closer toward us as I let my guard down. If they wanted to do anything to us they probably would have by now. When they got closer I could tell that their faces look identical, as if they were the same person. They are both wearing the same outfit matching down to the buttons.

"If you would follow us we will take you to the admiral of the fleet; I believe he will be able to help you." I looked at Star sharing a moment of thought if we should go with them, but at the moment our options are limited so it looks like we have no choice. We both nodded in agreement as the two men slowly floated toward one of the doors with me and Star in tow. The doors whooshed open reveling another room around the same size as the one we were just in, only this one was filled to the brim with instruments, panels, and stations all manned by people who looked identical. There was no mistaking it now, these people are all the same person, they all talk in the same voice and act in the same way. None of them looked up from their takes as we made our way by, down the narrow passageway that we are being led through.

Star had taken my hand as we walked behind the two men waiting until they took us to whoever this admiral was. After walking through endless corridors and different rooms we finally arrived at what I assumed to be the admiral. We are at a huge set of doors that cracked open slowly revealing a huge central core of the ship. The room is circular with computers all around the walls beeping along, and in the center of the room there is a huge orb with tubes and wires coming out of it all connected to the computers all around us. The orb in the center of the room is glowing a brilliant shade of blue, the light feels welcoming and warm to my skin. There is a small platform right in front of the orb that Star and I made our way toward. The two men who had brought us here are already leaving the room without saying anything. When we reached the platform the blue orb pulsed brightly and spoke in the same voice as all the other people we had heard on our way here.

"Welcome to my home, I am sure you have many questions so let's not waste any time, please ask away." I looked at Star and saw she had the same puzzled look that I was feeling. I was not expecting anything like this, to be where we ended up jumping to. I thought for a slight moment before finally speaking up.

"What... are you? I don't want to come off as rude but I have never met a creature like you before." The orb pulsed brightly again as it responded.

"The feeling is mutual, I have only ever meet mindless beasts in my time. You are the first intelligent beings I have found. Everything you see is all controlled by me. All the ships, computers, and people are a part of me. We are all one being controlled by me here at the center. I see and hear everything the people do instantly and can react as needed. I know that I was built by someone, but I don't know who that being is The earliest memory I have is being powered on, already in space with my primary mission uploaded. My mission is to travel the stars, charting the galaxies for as long as time. I have been doing so for thousands of years. In my travels I have found rogue planets beaming with monsters and beasts who only cared about meat. In all my time I have never meet any intelligent creatures until now. Please tell me how you came upon my ship? I am quite interested how you pulled that off." I looked at Star but she was speaking before I could even think what to say.

"Someone else is the reason we are here." Star grabbed my arm, lifting it up reveling the watch. "We don't know who but someone put this watch on my friend Marco and every twenty-four hours it takes us to a new place in time and space. We have just recently learned how to slightly control it but we don't have full control When we appeared on your ship, that was the watch taking us here." The orb was silent for a few moments until it blinked to life speaking once again.

"Interesting, I am trying to think of any other way you could find yourself upon this ship but I don't believe there is one. You see this fleet is protected by a shield that only lets in what I have decided to let in, seeing as how I didn't let you in I don't see any other way that you could have ended up here." I took this opportunity to speak up.

"We are just trying to find our way home, Star and I have been through a lot." I said as I put my had on Star's shoulder. The orb quickly responded in the same blue light.

"I wish I could be of help but sadly I have no records of a time traveling watch and can be of no aid. You are welcome to stay on this ship as long as you like, beds will be provided as well as food and drink. Also if you two are willing I would like to give you a proper arrival to my ship. If you are willing I would love to get to know about where you come from and your traditions so I can give you the welcome you deserve as well as archive the information for my mission." I looked at Star who was already looking at me with a huge smile on her face, that's all it took to convince me.

"I think that would be a great idea, uhh... I didn't get your name by the way." The orb blinked after a slight delay.

"You can call me Star fleet Endeavor, that is what was uploaded as my identity." Star laughed lightly under her breath, I shook my head at her and spoke.

"How about we call you Ed?"

"If you agree to let me throw you the welcome I wish to give and learn about your kind then yes, you may call me Ed." Star nodded at me.

"You have a deal, Ed."

"Oh wonderful, please follow these two, they will get you ready for the welcoming." The two who brought us here had entered the room again, well at least I think it's the same people but who knows. One approached me and the other Star.

"Sir will you please follow me."

"Ma'am, follow me and we can prepare." Star looked and me and smiled.

"I'll be fine Marco, go on! We can meet up when they are ready." I must have looked worried about being separated from her, but she was right, we have plenty of time to spare at the moment.

"Alright, I'll see you soon." Star smiled at me and walked off with her companion to who knows where. I was putting a lot of trust in this orb but I don't have much of a choice. I followed the floating man as he leads me down hallways and passageways alike until we ended up in a medium size room that was filled with different clothes as well as a few other men who look to be busy at work preparing everything. The one who led me here spoke to me.

"If you would sit in the chair there sir, we can get started." The man gestured to a chair at the far end of the room; it looks almost like a barber's chair. I made my way to the chair and sat down, the second I did the chair rose into the air lifting me twenty feet up. The man floated up to me and calmly started asking questions in the same voice as the orb. He asked me hundreds of questions about my family, my life, earth, Star, everything. It took us five hours to get through everything when we finally did the chair lowered down to the ground and the man spoke up again.

"With the information you and your companion have given me I will be able to give you a truly grand welcome! Please take the next hour to prepare yourself with any of the dress ware provided and feel free to use the facilities as well. I will be back in an hour to bring you to the party." The man and all of his assistants floated out of the room leaving me alone. I looked around and noticed that there is a shower area in the back, I haven't had a warm shower in a long time so I wasn't going to waste this opportunity. I stripped down from my dirty old clothes and threw my jacket on the ground, I made my way to the shower and turned it on. It was instantly warm to the touch so I stepped inside and let the water flow all over my body. I felt the sting of the warm water finding the smalls cuts I had from being in the brush so much. It hurt but felt good to clean them out at the same time, just like everything else it was bittersweet. I stayed in that shower for forty five minutes just lost in the warmth of the water, a pleasure I had come to miss greatly. I finally forced myself out of the shower and looked and what was available for me to wear. There was everything from formal wear to street clothes, I figure if this is going to be a 'grand welcome party' I should probably dress the part. I threw on the first black suit I could find that fit me well enough and sprayed some cologne over myself. I never was one to spend a lot of time getting ready. Right when I was finishing up the doors to the room flew open and the man floated back in.

"The party is now ready for your arrival, is Marco ready?"

"As ready as I ever will be for a space party Ed, lead the way." He floated off as I followed. We made our way through a maze of halls until we ended up at an elevator. The doors opened as Ed gestured for me to enter.

"This will take you to the party Marco, please do enjoy. There are already more people up there to aid you, should you need it." The man floated away. It was so weird to think that every single person I talked to was just another Ed. I made my way into the elevator and heard the doors close behind me as I felt the small box I was in start to rise. After a few moments the doors opened up to a huge ballroom with one enormous long table filled with earth food. Everything you could imaging was there! Pizza, burgers, nachos, everything! The ceiling of the room must be made of glass because above me is nothing but stars. Out here, so deep in space they shine so bright. I started to make my way toward the table, watching the different Ed's floating about dealing with last minute preparations. As I reached the table I hear the sound of doors opening behind me and turn to see Star emerging from the elevator dressed in a eloquent red ball gown. She smiled at me and made her way to me.

"How do I look Marco? I figured why not go all out." She had done up her hair and put on makeup; she looked more amazing then I have ever seen her before. I am stricken.

"You look amazing Star..." I couldn't stop looking at Star in her dress. I could feel my face getting red with embarrassment as Star just laughed it off.

"You're so cute when you blush." Star took my hand and led me to the table. Star was wide eyed at all the food set out in front of us. A feast like this is truly a treat for being in our situation.

"Wow... they really have everything here. I don't know where to start." I laughed at her and sat down.

"Well I'm going for the pizza, that looks so good." Star went right for the nachos, she always did love my nachos back on earth. As we were eating, one of the Ed's came up to us and offered us some drinks; as there is only water on the table we accepted the delight of something fruity. We ate, talked, and drank for hours. Laughing at each other's jokes, talking about the things we have seen and done; we are having a amazing time under the stars. After a few of the drinks we both realized that there was alcohol in them. At this point neither of us cared but we made sure not to drink too much but still had some fun. As we are talking and laughing to ourselves music starts to play as the ballroom floor lit up in a spectacular display of lights. Before I could even think Star had me by the arm pulling me to the dance floor. The music was playing slowly as she pulled me into her. I felt her hands wrap around my neck as she started to sway to the music. I put my arms around her waist and joined in the small dance we are sharing. I looked up into the night sky, at all those bright glowing stars above us. There is so much life out there, so much that we don't know and somehow within all those stars in the sky I found myself my own brightly glowing Star. As we swayed to the music I couldn't help but think of the man who hurt her. Star was so pure and full of life before we left on this journey, but ever since I got her back from him she has been different. I can tell she is trying her best to hide it, but I know that what he did affected her more that she is willing to admit. She will talk to me about it when she is ready and I know that, I'm just so pissed that there is nothing I can do at the moment. He hurt her and I wasn't there to protect her..

"What's wrong Marco?" I must have been lost in my thoughts and drifted from the dance. I smiled at her knowing this wasn't the time for any of that.

"Nothing at all Star, I couldn't be happier." She smiled at me and looked up at the stars as we stopped dancing.

"Do you ever wonder what's out there Marco? If we found this ship in the middle of space who knows what else is in those stars." I looked at the watch, still glowing a soft white.

"If we had control of this watch maybe we could go find out." She laughed at me.

"You really want to spend your life exploring the galaxy Marco? Don't you think that would get old after a while?" I smiled at her.

"Not if I get to explore it with you." Star blushed at me and hugged me tightly.

"You're so sweet Marco." I embraced her back looking up at the stars once again.

"If I could leave with you right now and take control of this watch to go explore the galaxy I would in a heartbeat. You're all I need Star; when I'm with you everything shines so much brighter." Star pulled back from the hug and pulled my eyes from the stars to hers.

"I will follow you to the edge of space and time Marco Diaz." Before I could react she had her lips on mine. The kiss didn't end with a small peck on the lips this time. Star pushed her weight into me passionately moving her lips against mine. I kissed her back wrapping my arms around her, I can feel her tongue pushing against my lips, begging for entrance. I let her in as my mind was lost from everything else. Our small make-out session lasted only a few minutes but they felt like hours. As Star pulled away she smiled at me and laughed.

"I know I said we shouldn't get distracted but I've missed you and have wanted to do that for a while." I smiled back at her.

"Well feel free to do it anytime." She playfully hit my on the arm laughing.

"Don't get your hopes up, mister!" I laughed along with her as we continued to dance the night away in the star lit ballroom. After a few more hours of having fun, things finally settled down.

"I'm so tired Marco, we should get some rest while we can. We don't often get to sleep in safety." In agreement I stood up from the table and took her by the hand, helping her up.

"Let's get going then, my princess!" I said as I bowed to her. Star giggled at me

"I could get used to that." Laughing, I pulled her toward the elevator where a floating Ed was waiting for us.

"Ed, we would like to get some rest now. Can you show us to some beds?" The elevator doors opened as Ed moved us inside.

"I will meet you at the bottom and take you to your room." The doors closed and the elevator darted down the shaft. When we got to the bottom, sure enough, another Ed was waiting for us.

"If you will follow me please, I do hope you have a good time." I put my hand on Ed's shoulder.

"That was the most fun I have had in years Ed, thank you." Ed looks pleased with my response. We had only walked a few feet but we had already stopped at a door.

"Here we are, this will be your quarters for the rest of your stay here. Feel free to come and go as you like." I looked at the watch and saw that we only had ten hours left until our next jump. I looked back at Ed.

"In ten hours we will be taken from here by the watch Ed, I don't know if we will ever meet again so I want to say thank you again for all your help. It's rare to find someone who is willing to aid us." Ed nodded at me in response.

"I will wake you in nine hours then, to say our goodbyes If you need anything in the meantime, please don't hesitate to ask." Ed floated out of the room and the doors whooshed closed. I turned around to see Star had already stripped out of her dress and was in bed. There was only one bed in the room so I looked around for a place to sleep. Star must have noticed because she was giggling at me once again.

"Get over here Marco, I don't bite." I could feel my face getting red but there was no other choice so screw it. I stripped down to my boxers and climbed into bed with Star. She leaned into me and put her head on my chest.

"Thanks for a great night Marco." Before I could respond I watched her close her eyes and drift to sleep almost immediately after she said that. I can hear her soft breaths and feel her chest push and pull against my body. I could feel sleep pulling me in as well and before I knew it I was dreaming of earth once again.


End file.
